There’s a pretty big argument in the satyr community whether ipotanes are just horse satyrs or if horse satyrs are ipotanes or if there’s any use in separating them blah blah blah it’s a whole thing.
There’s a pretty big argument in the satyr community whether ipotanes are just horse satyrs or if horse satyrs are ipotanes or if there’s any use in separating them blah blah blah it’s a whole thing.
16 Comments
… pucas are horses?? I know they’re rabbits in Odin Sphere but I thought they were just kinda. small humans. Goblins.
Oh, a cursory search suggests they’re shapeshifters, so I guess they can be horses too.
Yup, shapeshifters! They typically take the form of a small black horse, but can also take the form of a human, but they still have horse ears. They’re not malicious like some other horse-based supernatural creatures(Like kelpies), they’re mainly mischievous little fellas who’ll give you a wild ride if you get on their backs. The worst you get from that is a fright and some scratches from branches, typically(Though I’m sure accidents happen). Busch Gardens Williamsburg used to have a ride in the Ireland section of the park called Corkscrew Hill and one of the characters in it was said to be a Puca… Though he sprouted wings like a pegasus so make of that what you will ROFL
(Hi, I know too much about horse fae, and now I must go learn about Ipotane!)
I don’t know what Odin Sphere is, but yes mischievous shapeshifters describes them well (though they could be a bit helpful sometimes, which sums up the Fae rather well)! They are definitely Fae, but also goblins could describe them as well (puca/pooka can be translated to ‘goblin’). Also, they are not always horses, and are sometimes other animals too (eagles, dogs, cats, and rabbits are common, also I heard a story of one whom took the form of a horse with a snail head). I remember there being a rabbity monster that I think/hope might have been a pooka. (Panel 5 of this one: https://www.skindeepcomic.com/archive/handshakes-8-unfamiliar-terms/ ). Sorry if this is a bit much, I could talk happily about them all day if allowed. :)
There’s at least one well-known rabbit pooka.
And for anyone missing the reference, it’s Harvey from the movie of the same name (which TIL is based on a play).
Does anyone remember the old Jimmy Stewart movie “Harvey”? The titular giant invisible rabbit was identified in the movie as a pooka.
Ah yay the satyr came back again!
Yes! Definitely a beloved regular!
Satyrs started as horselike, and became goatlike later due to the influence of Pan.
So satyrs are goat ipotanes? The argument bevomes ever more complicated!
More specifically, the original depictions of satyr were as naked young boys with a horse’s tail. I don’t believe they had any attribution of horse legs at any point.
As to ipotanes in general, the first mention of the creature seems to be from the 14th century, and may have initially been a re-interpretation of centaurs.
Horse or donkey tail and ears (which might also be called sileni?) But really, the mythics trying to figure out which category they would have been in centuries ago might be a futile endeavor, because the humans who depicted them in their art and stories weren’t especially scientific about it, and just statistically most of the surviving art would have been made by humans.
If you recognize a separation/difference between Satyr’s and Faun’s, it makes sense for Ipotanes to similarly be considered separate. Same with any other Human-torso & other-mammal-pair-of-legs combo’s.
If you don’t recognize the difference, then you have to start questioning where the point of divergence actually is. You could argue that Harpies are the same as Satyr’s, only they’re part bird who grow wings instead of horns. Same with Centaur’s, who are Ipotanes with an extra pair of legs. If you argue that having the different limbs (wings, or 4 legs) is a sufficient point of difference, then why are the large horns which are specific to Satyr’s & the small horns specific to Fauns not enough to categorize Ipotanes separately from them?
Basically, if you don’t allow everyone to be their own thing, then you have a category that’s so big it becomes half-meaningless. If you want to force Ipotanes in, then Satyr’s are simply half-human mostly-non-magical bipeds, and include Traditional Satyr’s, Faun, Ipotanes & Harpies as examples.
I didn’t even know horse satyrs were a thing. Maybe an illustrated encyclopedia of these beings might be worth a kickstarter. In your copious spare time, of course.
Ipotanes are just two thirds of a centaur.
I remember reading a mythical reference that said it was ipotanes who taught Dionyssus/Bachus how to party. How’s that for a reputation to live up to?